A recent Capitec Bank Twitter survey showed that 21% of respondents name furthering their education as a 2019 goal. However, how do adult learners overcome the obstacles, such as the additional time and money needed to further education?
Online courses offer a number of benefits to South Africans. The location and size of campuses is no longer a problem. Students can study on a smartphone, tablet or computer, from anywhere, anytime. This is great for people who are currently employed, allowing them to study after hours or on weekends. Studying through an online course is also normally more affordable. Lectures are filmed and can be distributed to thousands of learners, rather than just those in a classroom. To help further reduce these costs, Capitec has launched educational offers as part of its Live Better Benefits.
“We’ve partnered with Educate24 and GetSmarter to offer our over 11.5 million clients the opportunity to study further and build new skillsets.” says Francois Viviers, executive: marketing and communications at Capitec Bank. “We’ve seen a growing demand for these online short courses, which allow people to study from anywhere, anytime, and seize opportunities at their current employer or even apply for better jobs. It’s part of helping our clients to live better.”
Capitec clients get 50% off Educate24 courses and R4000 off GetSmarter courses. These Live Better Benefit offerings have saved students R636 385 over the past 12 months.
Viviers explains how to make the most of online study:
* Study anywhere, anytime – Online studies can be done from the comfort of your own home, local library or coffee shop at a time that suits you and your busy schedule. This flexibility not only makes it possible to study while permanently employed but also can lead to cost savings. According to a study by Wits University students not living in the same suburb or city as the institution spend roughly R500 per month to travel to and from campus. Not having to travel means that you can save R6000 per year.
* Study through top universities – Online institutions like GetSmarter partner with leading universities such as the University of Cape Town, Stellenbosch and WITS, to select, design and deliver premium online short courses with a data-driven focus on learning gain. This means you have the credibility of a renowned University brand on your CV. Courses span a variety of fields including Digital Marketing, Operations Management and Bookkeeping.
* Revisit lectures – Missed a class or forgot what a lecturer said? Online courses, like those offered by Educate24, allow you to revisit any section of the course that wasn’t clear, at your leisure. Your course can be accessed any time you need to refer back to it. If you have queries about any sections of the work, you receive personalised attention, through your course lecturer. Once your query is sent, a response is guaranteed within 24 hours.
* Online studies mean lower costs – Tertiary education is necessary training for the modern working world, but tuition fees and other must-haves can get costly. With online study, not only will you save money on travel and textbooks, but course fees are now more affordable too. And lower costs means that accessibility is increased to allow anyone the opportunity to upskill themselves.